environmental liability News

Brazil’s Vale to Invest $2.5B in Technology to Prevent Mining Dam Disasters: Reuters

Brazil’s Vale said on Thursday that it plans to invest $2.5 billion over the next five years in technology that removes the need for tailings dams, the waste facilities responsible for two deadly mining disasters in the past four years. …

Mining Giant BHP Faces $5B Damages Claim over 2015 Brazil Dam Disaster

Anglo-Australian mining giant BHP is facing a landmark, $5.0 billion damages claim in England for being “woefully negligent” in the run-up to a 2015 dam failure that led to Brazil’s worst environmental disaster, a lawsuit alleges. The claim, which will …

The Lowdown: May is National Safety Stand-Down Month

What’s coming up for your construction clients? The 6th annual National Safety Stand-Down takes place May 6-10, 2019. First initiated by OSHA in 2014, the week encourages construction companies of all sizes to participate in ‘stand-downs’ – a specific time …

Brazil Mining Giant Vale Warns Another Tailings Dam Could Collapse

Brazilian mining giant Vale said Saturday [March 23] that communities in the southeastern state of Minas Gerais have been ordered to evacuate after independent auditors found that one of its dams could collapse at any moment. On Friday, the company …

Brazil’s Backlash over Vale Dam Disaster Deepens with Mine Closure, Frozen Funds

Vale SA’s shares declined on Monday as the world’s biggest iron ore producer faced continued backlash from Brazilian authorities after a deadly mining accident in January. Rio de Janeiro-based Vale was ordered on March 15 to shut its Timbopeba mine …

Brazil Miner Vale Fired Inspection Firm for Refusing to Certify Dam’s Safety: Prosecutors

Brazilian iron ore miner Vale fired an inspection firm because the company refused to certify one of its dams as safe, months before the barrier collapsed and killed hundreds, prosecutors said in a document filed this week, as they explained …

Groundwater Near Most Coal Plants Polluted by Coal Ash: Environmental Groups

More than 90 percent of U.S. coal-fired power plants that are required to monitor groundwater near their coal ash dumps show unsafe levels of toxic metals, according to a study released on Monday by environmental groups, which cited the potential …

Vale CEO and Several Senior Execs Resign After Deadly Brazil Dam Disaster

Brazilian iron ore miner Vale SA Chief Executive Fabio Schvartsman and several other senior executives resigned on Saturday in what the company described as a temporary move, after one of its mining dams burst in January, killing hundreds. Vale said …

Brazil Prosecutors Seek Arrest of Vale Executive after Tailings Dam Disaster

Brazilian federal prosecutors are seeking the arrest of a Vale SA senior executive, authorities said on Friday, following the collapse of a dam holding mining byproducts that is believed to have killed over 300 people. This is the first time …

Vale’s Senior Management Unaware of Dam Risk Report, Says CFO

Senior management at Brazilian miner Vale were never shown internal security documents indicating that its dam at Brumadinho was at risk of collapse, the company’s chief financial officer said on Tuesday [Feb. 12]. The CFO, Luciano Siani, was asked about …